“First of all, the Google brand name carries a lot of weight, and they are right here in the Bay Area,” said Robert Notte, Jamba’s vice president of information technology. “That and the belief that this industry is moving quickly towards mobile commerce and that it is better to be on the front end than trying to catch up. There is a lot of value being one of the first ones out there supporting this.”

“The technology, the consumerisation of smartphones, the Google brand name — I think all of these were pretty big factors in making it an easy decision for us to pilot,” Notte added.

“Gift cards is a place where we can really leverage Google Wallet,” Notte continued. “Tap-and-pay is nice, but I think the real power comes with the ability to push offers to consumers and move gift cards through Google Wallet and, eventually, handle loyalty [programs] through Google Wallet.”